Informing local communities of the importance of the Bangladesh Forest Inventory (BFI) is crucial to facilitate its implementation. For this, meetings are organized with local community groups, especially in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs).
In CHTs, seven information sharing meetings were held from 5 to 14 February 2018 to inform local stakeholders in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) about the role of the BFI. The BFI is a network of 1858 forest plots that provides a census on Bangladesh’s tree and forest resources. The meetings are critical for engaging the local support needed to efficiently implement the BFI and are a step forward towards future participatory forest monitoring. Additionally, they provide a platform for community leaders to reflect on the importance of forest resources, communicate specific needs, and give feedback related to forest monitoring.
During the information sharing meeting Ms. Subarna Chakma, Chief Executive Officer of Chittagong Hill Tract Regional Council (CHTRC) said that “Forest inventory is important to assess the tree and forest resources, but needs to follow some rules adopted by traditional institutions in CHT as well as consent from local community people, because most of the rural people in CHT are relying on forests for their livelihood”. She further requested meeting participants coming from different locations to support the field data collection on the 320 forest plots in the CHT.
The representative from the Bangladesh Forest Department (BFD), Conservator of Forests (CF) of Rangamati Mr. Sanaullah Patwary mentioned that “this survey is to measure the present status of tree and forest resources in the whole country and the results will help to take effective decisions on forestry. This survey is not related to ownership of land and forests”.
A total 169 participants (male-157, female-12) attended the meetings in Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban districts, including Forest Department officials, Upazila Chairman and Nirbahi Officer, other government institutions (agricultural and education department), traditional institutions (Headman, Karbari), a journalist, and other interested community members.
The Bangladesh Forest Department under the Ministry of Environment and Forests is implementing the Bangladesh Forest Inventory with the financial assistance of USAID and technical assistance from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and SilvaCarbon.